Chiesa di San Giuseppe dei Teatini

The story

San Giuseppe dei Teatini faces the Quattro Canti and is one of the city’s great baroque churches. Building began in 1612 for the Theatine order, which had arrived in Palermo a few years earlier.

The interior has three naves on monolithic columns, with inlaid marble, stucco and frescoes covering every available surface: Palermo baroque at its richest.

The majolica dome, visible from half the city, is the church’s mark on the skyline of the centre.

Why it is worth it

You pass the Quattro Canti a dozen times without noticing that the side door opens onto one of the most sumptuous interiors in Palermo. You step in off a noisy street and find yourself under tall columns and a painted vault. Look up into the dome, then at the side chapels, where the marble is inlaid like cloth.